A day after the prosecution, led by special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat, and the defence team led by Shrikant Shivade completed their arguments in the Salman Khan hit-and-run case,the Mumbai Session court has announced May 6 as the verdict date.

Salman was charged under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 304 II (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) which attracts upto 10 years in prison; Section 279 (rash and negligent driving) which stipulates six months jail; Section 337 and 338 (causing hurt by act endangering life & causing grievous hurt) with punishment upto two years; Section 427 (mischief causing damage to property) with maximum punishment of upto two years.

Also, Motor Vehicle Act, Section 34 (a), (b) read with 181 (driving vehicle in contravention of rules) and 185 (driving at great speed after consuming alcohol with punishment of cancellation of driving license; and sections of the Bombay Prohibition Act dealing with diving under influence of alcohol which attract maximum six months in jail.

The testimony of defense witness Ashok Singh, Salman Khan’s driver, had given a different twist to the case after he claimed that it was him and not the actor behind the wheel on the intervening night.

On the allegations of drunk driving, Khan had earlier told the court that he was drinking water during his visit to the Rain Bar and J W Marriot. The chemical analyser had found it to be otherwise, saying that his blood tested positive for alcohol which was more than double the permissible limit.

Superstar Salman Khan on Thursday denied that he was campaigning for a political party or contesting himself in the coming Lok Sabha elections.

“Contrary to the rumours, I am not contesting elections nor campaigning for any political party…”, Salman tweeted after his previous tweet led to speculation that he is campaigning for the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Earlier in the day, the “Sultan” actor retweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tweet, urging people “to exercise your right (to vote) and participate in making the Government”.

Salman Khan. flickr

On March 13, Modi, on Twitter, requested several actors including Salman and Aamir Khan to “inspire and motivate youth in your own andaz (style) to vote so that we can strengthen democracy and our country”.